Contents

History

From 1849 to 1953 the Folketing was one of the two houses in the bicameral parliament known as the Rigsdag; the other house was known as the Landsting. Since both houses, in principle, had equal power, the terms "upper house" and "lower house" were not used. The difference between the houses was voter representation.

The Folketing was elected by common vote and consisted mainly of independent farmers, traders and merchants as well as the educated classes (i.e. the liberal forces of society). From 1866 to 1915 the right of vote for the Landsting was restricted to the wealthiest, and some of its members were even appointed by the king, thus it predominantly represented the old aristocracy and other conservatives. From 1915 the Landsting was also elected by common vote, although indirectly and with a higher age limit than for the Folketing. During the next decades, law making mainly took place in the Folketing and the Landsting came to be regarded as a superfluous rubber stamp.

In 1953 the people by popular vote adopted a revised constitution. Among the changes was the elimination of the Landsting and the introduction of a unicameral parliament, known only as the Folketing. Christiansborg Palace has been the domicile of parliament since 1849. The palace is located in the heart of Copenhagen.

Jørgen Poulsen was excluded from New Alliance in June 2008 and joined the Social Liberal Party.

Gitte Seeberg left her New Alliance seat in parliament in favour of becoming the secretary general of WWF Denmark; her substitute is Villum Christensen.

Naser Khader left New Alliance following a leadership dispute; the party then changed its name to Liberal Alliance and is led by Anders Samuelsen; Khader was an independent at first but then joined the Conservatives.

The Conservatives

Constitutional requirements

The Folketing consists of 179 members all elected for a four-year term or until the Prime Minister (via the Queen-in-council) calls for elections, whichever comes first. Greenland and the Faroe Islands each elect 2 members separately.

The Constitution requires for "equal representation of the various opinions of the electorate", and for regional representation to be secured. The electoral act stipulates the details for this: 135 seats are elected by proportional representation in 17 districts, and 40 supplementary seats are allotted to make out for the difference between district and nation-wide vote. The 135 seats are distributed to the parties by the D'Hondt method of the party-list system of proportional representation and the 40 supplementary seats by the Sainte-Laguë method. Each party may choose among a number of methods for how the seats won by that party are to be distributed among the candidates.[1]

The result is proportional representation; however, in rare cases, the biggest parties may gain one or two seats extra from smaller parties.

The voter may vote for a party list, one of the candidates on a party list, or an independent candidate.

Parties (usually district party assemblies) decide on the nomination of candidates before the election. When co-nomination is assigned, candidates are elected according to personal votes. When priority order is assigned, only an extreme number of personal votes can change the rank.

Parties must either pass the threshold, 2% of the national vote, or gain a district seat to gain any supplemental seats. Though possible, it is very rare for a party to gain a district seat without getting 2% of the national vote.

To contest an election, parties which are not currently represented in Parliament must collect certificates of support from ca. 20,000 voters (the number of valid votes cast in Denmark proper at the previous election divided by 175, the equivalent of one seat) and have these individually stamped by the registration offices in these voters' municipalities of residence.

Denmark has universal suffrage for all citizens over 18 years who live in the realm and who have not been declared incapable of managing their own affairs. The constitution makes it possible to restrict suffrage for convicted criminals and people receiving social benefits, but this option has not been used for several decades.

All voters who have not been convicted of criminal acts, making them unworthy for a seat in the parliament, are eligible. The Folketing decides if a member is eligible or not (after his election).

The constitution does not mention political parties at all, although the electoral act does, and MPs are virtually always elected for a party. The only independent who has been elected in modern times is the comedian Jacob Haugaard, but independents, usually unknown ones, are seen at every election. Requirements for standing as an independent candidate are much smaller than for a new party, but independents are only allowed to contest in a single district, making it very difficult to gain the needed number of votes for a seat.

Members enjoy immunity, meaning that no criminal charges may be brought against an MP, unless he is caught red-handed, provided that the Folketing doesn't lift the immunity. The purpose of this is to prevent political persecution. In practice, the Folketing has always lifted the immunity when a member has been accused of a crime, usually with the consent of the accused member himself.

Debates can be conducted behind closed doors, although this hasn't happened since 9 April 1940, day of the German invasion in WW II.

Ministers may hold a seat in parliament, but they don't need to. Supreme Court judges — according to convention — may not hold a seat whilst also acting as judges.

Ministers may — even if they are not MPs — demand talking time whenever they want.

Bills may be brought before parliament by members (private bills) and ministers. Bills are predominantly brought before parliament by ministers, since they have the Law Office of the Ministry of Justice at their disposal. Instead of putting forward a private bill, the opposition usually put forward a proposal for parliamentary decision, i.e. a short resolution which addresses the subject and directs the relevant minister to propose a bill concerning it.